You Can Do It – A Guest Post from Cigdem Kobu

If you are new to the site (and welcome to the many of you who are!), you may not know that I am celebrating the two-year birthday of amultitudeofthings by inviting some of the friends I have made through my travels in the online world to guest post on my site. I have asked them to choose a phrase from my manifesto – the words that guide me in living my life – and write about what that phrase means to them.

Cigdem is one of those friends. She’s a remarkable woman with a talent for bringing other remarkable women together. When I talk with her, she always points me to something I could do or consider. It’s no wonder she chose “you can do it” as the phrase she wanted to write about. Yes, you can do it. Really.

All of your bridges may have burned down, and you may have lost all of your fortresses.

You may feel exhausted, deprived or just very, very lonely.

You, gutsy woman, even under such circumstances and conditions, you can do it!

The power you need is present in the ingenious, womanly blood flowing through your veins.

And those pioneers who have already started living their own dreams with love and integrity are shedding light on your path.

Here are some of them:

Desiree Adaway did it. She brought up her children as a single mom, leaving her heart behind at home with her kids every morning as she left to go make a living. At the same time, she built her own business from scratch. Now she helps organizations design programs that create unrestricted revenue and advocates and helps them create momentum.

YOU CAN DO IT!

Jenny Bones did it. One day, Jenny found herself on her way to Detroit to stay with a man she’d only ever known via the Internet. She had a few black trash bags full of clothes and 87 cents in her pocket. This once-successful project manager who took clients out for three hundred dollar dinners every week was now virtually homeless and completely broke. Today, Jenny has a radiant business and illuminates the lives of others by teaching them how to change their world through their words.

YOU CAN DO IT!

Julie Daley did it. She became a mother at 17 and a widow at 38. She graduated from college at 45. And she began to write and dance only after she was 45. Now Julie is a breathtaking dancer, writer and a guide to women who are ready to give birth to their new consciousness.

YOU CAN DO IT!

Heather Plett did it. She experienced rape, the death of her son, the mental illness and multiple suicide attempts of a loved one, the killing of her dad in a farming accident, and quitting her secure high-paying government job. Now she compassionately and successfully guides women on the path through chaos to creativity.

YOU CAN DO IT!

Jennifer Ogusola did it. After being diagnosed with multiple sclerosis, journalist Jennifer transformed the message of her disease into her dream business of hand-made journals. Today she has a thriving business that also feeds her soul.

YOU CAN DO IT!

LaVonne Ellis did it. She let go of anything that didn’t nourish her heart anymore and chose to give birth to her dream project through collecting the life stories of real people. Now she writes and shares true stories with a burst of flavor on her own online magazine.

YOU CAN DO IT!

Jackie Walker did it. She went through divorce, loss, alienation, and bankruptcy. And yet, anyone who knows her agrees that she is the ultimate symbol of unconditional love, hope and joy. She radiates her world. And recently, she has started The Mothering Revolution.

YOU CAN DO IT!

Alison Gresik did it. She battled severe depression, but she didn’t give up writing. In 2011, she embarked on an open-ended trip around the world with her family. Since then, she has written her memoir and even raised the money needed to self-publish it through a successful crowdfunding campaign.

YOU CAN DO IT!

Susannah Conway did it. One day in 2005, the man she loved died very suddenly from a heart attack. She didn’t even have the chance to bid him farewell. As Susannah moved through the stages of grief, she dove into photography and writing, which helped her unravel and heal herself layer by layer. Now she helps other women transform their lives through her workshops and books.

YOU CAN DO IT!

Jen Louden did it. She is not only the “comfort queen” who wrote multiple best-sellers and was on Oprah, but she is also the “depression warrior queen” as she has dealt with depression most of her life. In spite of all the crazy, heart-wrenching things she went through, today Jen is the icon of self-care and self-compassion as well as a true example of selfless devotion and service.

YOU CAN DO IT!

Sandi Amorim did it. A sad event brought her face-to-face with the naked truth: she could no longer take life for granted. Since then, she has been on a mission to obliterate “someday thinking” from the face of Earth. Along that journey, she has positively influenced and genuinely helped other fiery women.

YOU CAN DO IT!

Meg Worden did it. At one time, Meg’s life got so out of control that she found herself in an unsustainable and sinking relationship while epically self-medicating and selling ecstasy pills for a living. What’s more, she ended up incarcerated in federal prison. Today, Meg is an esteemed nutrition coach who teaches women how to radiate from the inside out. She’s also writing her memoir.

YOU CAN DO IT!

Brigitte Pilloud did it. She left corporate America after 15 years of progressive employment in strategic marketing and product development. She was totally burned out. Now Bridget is an intuitive guide, a healer and an energy shifter. She loves to prosper and never gets tired of reminding other women that they were born to prosper as well.

YOU CAN DO IT!

Kris Carr did it. She got cancer and decided to call it sexy. She didn’t listen to the naysayers who said one couldn’t talk about cancer being crazy sexy. Against all odds, Kris built her crazy sexy empire, leading the way to finding health and fulfillment at the same time.

YOU CAN DO IT!

Ronna Detrick did it. Ronna used to struggle to find God in her own life. Her ability to believe, to have faith and hope were waning away when she decided to take her faith in her own hands and look into the depths of her soul. Today, God speaks to Ronna when she writes. And she leads provocative conversations on God and women in her sacred community.

YOU CAN DO IT!

Lianne Raymond did it. She lost her mother as a child, married her high school sweetheart, lost her baby, became a teacher, almost got divorced but restored her relationship. And along the way, she became a life coach while still teaching high school psychology. Today Lianne informs, inspires, and nourishes women on their journey and shows them the way that leads to living with wild abandon.

YOU CAN DO IT!

Andrea Olson did it. As the queen of multipotentialites, Andrea refused to choose one thing. Instead, she tried a multitude of things at the risk of being labeled as a rebel and a dreamer. She became a lawyer, a realtor, an economic development professional, a college administrator, and a few other things in between. Now she helps other women craft a new story, one full of infinite possibility.

YOU CAN DO IT!

Yael Daphna Saar did it. Yael’s mother killed herself when she lost her fight with postpartum depression. Yael was six-years-old. Later, Yael suffered from postpartum depression too. Three times! Today, she’s on a mission to liberate mothers from their postpartum demons by disarming guilt and teaching self-kindness.

YOU CAN DO IT!

Lee Brochstein did it. She went through divorce three times. Her life was shattered thrice. But she’s not sorry. Because now she’s teaching women that there is life, hope and “a better you” after divorce.

YOU CAN DO IT!

Tamara Holland did it. Post-conviction death penalty lawyer Tamara figured out that what she and the world really needed were more enthusiasm, color, whimsy, and creativity. Her children were grown up and out on their own, so she took courage and started her creative greeting card business. Recently, she made an agreement with a major greeting card distributor that will produce and sell her cards nationwide.

YOU CAN DO IT!

Nina Yau did it. After completing business school and well into a standard corporate life, Nina chose to leave the 9-to-5 lifestyle and buy a one-way ticket in order to lead a life suited to her truth. Nina’s first official print book will be releasing on August 1.

YOU CAN DO IT!

Jennifer Boykin did it. Jennifer held her baby girl while she died. However, she chose not to honor her dead child by becoming a martyr to her memory. Instead, she honored her girl by allowing her to become a chapter in an otherwise very long and beautiful unfolding story. Now Jennifer is the midlife midwife to women, whom she encourages to take responsibility to reinvent their lives at midlife and beyond.

YOU CAN DO IT!

Anna Guest-Jelley did it. She struggled with low self-esteem, warped body image and dizzying migraines. She had been on 65 diets. She starved, binged, broke down, and wept. She also experienced death, loss and unspeakable grief. When she hunted for community, she found echoes and misunderstanding. One day she turned to yoga, but she was told she was too fat to do it. So Anna started the Curvy Yoga movement, wrote the book of curves, and today she inspires women all over the world.

YOU CAN DO IT!

Jen Vertanen did it. She used to hate her career, resent her life and battle depression. She felt like a mess. Today, she’s on a mission to help women craft a wholehearted life through sharing stories and creating everyday adventures.

YOU CAN DO IT!

I did it. I went through a draining marriage and an exhausting divorce. I experienced dire conditions as a single mom and worked at a day job while doing non-stop freelance work in any free time I had left. Sleeping three hours a day had become my routine. At the end of 2010, I moved with my son to the States to be with the love of my life and left behind everything I had without blinking an eye. In a little more than a year, I built a strong network and a successful business in a foreign country and in a language that is not my mother tongue. By the way, I did all of that as a hard-core introvert. Nowadays, I hold intimate conversations with gutsy women about mindful living and sustainable business.

And you can do it too!

Nothing is unrealistic when you believe you can do it.

We all have stories. We all have wounds. We all have scars.

But that doesn’t mean we are broken. We are alive and kicking.

It is through your story, your wounds and scars, gutsy sister, that you have all the power and potential to understand, transform, create, and heal – to bring about change and make a difference in the world.

You have all the wisdom, riches and colors to craft and live your life on your own terms.

You, gutsy woman!

You are fertile with ideas, dreams and your creative creed.

Remember this:

If you can imagine it, you can do it.

If you can visualize it, you can do it.

If you can desire it, you can do it.

You are a seedpod of awesome possibilities. Allow yourself to burst open!

Now go do it! What are you waiting for?

You already have everything you need!

—

Cigdem Kobu is a business growth coach and catalyst who believes business is fun when it nourishes your heart first. She holds visionary conversations with gutsy, creative women about mindful living and sustainable business. And she leads a private circle of cohorts where women solopreneurs learn, create and prosper together. Cigdem is also the curator of A Year With Myself, the most comprehensive program for women who are ready to change their lives from the inside out. Follow Cigdem on Twitter @CigdemKobu and Facebook and sign up for her weekly Wicked Awesome Life newsletter.

Dear God Cigdem, this post made me weep with love for all the gutsy women you’ve shared, many of whom I’m fortunate to know, but also all the gutsy women who have yet to discover this truth about themselves!

Imagine a world where young women knew that they too were seedpod of possibilities. That is a future to live into!Sandi Amorim recently posted..Authentic Creativity is Self-Love

Dear Sandi and Karen, thank you!
I was just reading the post again and started weeping myself, Sandi. What do you say to that?!
Andrea, thanks again for hosting me here inside your beautiful home on the Web. I feel grateful to be surrounded by an amazing web of gutsy, creative, marvelous women!

The resilience and strength not only of these women but the hundreds of thousands who remain unnamed is deeply inspiring. Thank you, Cigdem and Andrea, for giving space for this recognition and Cigdem, for your beautifully inspiring words.Lisa recently posted..Hide and Seek

This. Is just what I needed today. And I’ve bookmarked it for those times when the feeling of “can I really pull this off?” comes back (cuz it will). Thank you, CK. ::breathing again::Tea Silvestre recently posted..Game-Changers Wanted: I Need Your Advice

Cigdem,
I swear every time I learn something new about you, you amaze me to know end. It’s been such an inspiration to know you and although everyone’s stories you mentioned were so moving, it was your story that moved me the most.
ps
You must make a poster of all these women who are amazing.. like you..
xoxoxxo
AnnieAnnie Andre recently posted..Get Paid To Be You! Create A Hire Me Page: (Monthly Report #3 July 2012)

Well. You didn’t really leave any wiggle room for excuses, now did you? Thank your for sharing these women’s stories with us all in this single space; I am moved beyond words.Ellen Berg recently posted..Stop Half-Assing Your Life

I just followed the bread crumbs from Teresa Deak’s post over at HandsOnGratitude.com and feel like I’ve wandered into Paradise. All these women doing all these glorious things – by stepping out of something that maybe used to fit (or maybe never fit at all) and stepping into themselves. You, Cigdem, creating a parade of fabulous on the street called Andrea. I’m thanking y’all, and I’m clicking over to thank Teresa right now.

Robert Burns the Scottish poet wrote “O wad some Power the gift tae gie us, to see oursels as ithers see us!” [translation - oh would some power the gift to give us, to see ourselves as others see us]. Being seen in this light is very humbling and beautiful. You raised more than a wee tear from me too as I read these true stories of courage, persistence, intuition and trust bringing great change. Thank you for seeing us and yourself so clearly. xJackie Walker recently posted..Everytime you use should, think of Sisyphus

I cannot tell you how deeply this piece has touched me. And continues to DO so. I’ve been undone in the most deLIGHTfull way by all of this. I love when something reaches so deep and shifts everything. I see, too, that there are a great many comments here that I will have to come back to… I could easily and willingly give a day’s reading to following each link and think that it will BE on my “looking forward to DOing” list. How BEautifully written barely says it…Currie recently posted..PLAY, What DOES It MEAN?! No, REALLY?! What?!

What a wonderful read to start the weekend and keep the energy going for our own dreams. Such an awesome post and I love the diversity of stories. Truly women are such fun – we get thru a lot more living than the average man who looks at corporate only

I have been so wrapped up in life that I didn’t even know this post was here until I finally went to my twitter feed. Bad me! I am honored to be up there and thank you for including me, although once again, my life has twisted and turned yet again and I am once again on a different path due to the ugliness of divorce! Oy…does life ever get easier? It certainly does make us stronger though, doesn’t it?? You are amazing! xxooLee recently posted..Menopause: The Second Talk